Meeting documents

SBDC Licensing Committee
Wednesday, 2nd July, 2014 6.00 pm

  • Meeting of Licensing Committee, Wednesday, 2nd July, 2014 6.00 pm (Item 7.)

To consider report of the Director of Services.

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report which sought approval for amendments to the current Scheme of Delegations in connection with licensing matters, primarily taxi and private hire licensing.

 

Sections 60, 61 and 62 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 permits a Council to suspend, revoke or refuse to renew vehicle, driver and operator licenses.  Section 68 of the 1976 Act permits an authorised officer of the Council to suspend a hackney carriage or private hire vehicle license in circumstances where the officer believes the vehicle to be unfit.  Currently, the Council does not have appropriate delegations in place to allow officers to use the suspension powers provided by Section 68.

 

In addition to the powers to suspend, revoke and refuse to renew licences there were other delegations detailed in paragraph 4.5 to 4.7 of the report that would benefit from updating.  These related to the Council’s penalty points system of enforcement for private hire drivers, operators and hackney carriage drivers, authority to prosecute where criminal offences involving taxi and private hire matters may have been committed and amendments to existing licensing delegation to change the line of delegations to change the line of delegation from the Director of Services to the Head of Health and Housing.

 

The Committee accordingly

 

 

RECOMMENDED to COUNCIL that the following be approved

 

1.    amendments to the scheme of delegations contained within the Council’s constitution to authorise the Head of Health and Housing to exercise powers contained within Sections 60, 61, 62 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976;

 

2.    addition to the scheme of delegations contained within the Council’s constitution to authorise the Head of Health and Housing to exercise powers contained within Section 68 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 including the authorisation of officers to exercise those powers;

 

3.    amendments to the scheme of delegations contained within the Council’s constitution to authorise the Head of Health and Housing to commence prosecution proceedings and issue formal cautions in connection with offences created by the enactments controlling or regulating the licensing of hackney carriage and private hire vehicle, driver and operators licences in consultation with the Head of Legal Services and Democratic Services;

 

4.    addition to the scheme of delegations contained within the Council’s constitution to authorise the Head of Health and Housing to issue penalty notices in accordance with the Council’s hackney carriage and private hire licensing policy;

 

5.    addition to the scheme of delegations contained within the Council’s constitution to authorise the Head of Health and Housing to determine appeals against the issue of penalty point notices issued in accordance with the Council’s hackney carriage and private hire licensing policy;

 

6.    amendment of all references to "Director of Services" within the scheme of licensing delegations contained within the Council’s constitution to be amended to "Head of Health and Housing" and for 3A to be amended to show delegation to Head of Health and Housing;

 

7.    amendment of page 37 of the Council’s constitution titled "Licensing Committee" to refer to "Chief Officer and Heads of Service are authorised to arrange for delegated matters to be carried out by appropriate staff in their department". 

 

 

 

 

 

Supporting documents: